Henna Art

This past weekend I attended a traditional Palestinian wedding. A traditional Palestinian wedding consists of a two day celebration; the first night is called the henna and the second night is the conventional wedding with the white fluffy dress and cake cutting. I have to say my favorite night is the henna, because it is the one of the very few occasions when I wear beautifully colorful embroidered dress. The henna is also the night when the bride and the groom are tattooed with henna. It is believed that the deeper the color the stronger the  love is between the bride and groom. It is tradition for the names of the bride and groom to be hidden in the design, and the wedding night is not to commence until the groom has found both names. After the wedding, the bride is not expected to perform any housework until her henna has faded away.
Henna like tattoos has become a popularized form of art. Henna can be intricate and dramatic. The different words for henna in ancient languages imply that it had more than one point of discovery and origin, as well as different pathways of daily and ceremonial use. Henna has been used to adorn young women's bodies as part of social and holiday celebrations since the late Bronze Age in the eastern Mediterranean. The Night of the Henna was celebrated by most groups in the areas where henna grew naturally: Jews, Muslims,Hindus, Christians and Zoroastrians, among others, all celebrated marriages by adorning the bride, and often the groom, with henna. Henna was regarded as having "Barakah," blessings, and was applied for luck as well as joy and beauty. Brides typically had the most henna, and the most complex patterns, to support their greatest joy, and wishes for luck. Some bridal traditions were very complex, such as those in Yemen, where the Jewish bridal henna process took four or five days to complete, with multiple applications and resist work. Though traditional henna artists were Nai caste in India, and barbering castes in other countries (lower social classes), talented contemporary henna artists can command high fees for their work. Women in countries where women are discouraged from working outside the home can find socially acceptable, lucrative work doing henna. Morocco, Mauritania,Yemen, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, as well as India and many other countries have thriving women's henna businesses. These businesses are often open all night for Eids, Diwali and Karva Chauth, and many women may work as a team for a large wedding where hundreds of guests will be hennaed as well as the bride and groom.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henna
- Nabieha Miqbel